AppExchange ISV partner onboarding guide

Ready to begin your journey with the AppExchange? Get on the

introduction path to complete the following six onboarding milestones:

This onboarding guide walks

through how to become a successful
AppExchange ISV partner and deploy
publish your
your solution on the AppExchange.
6 appexchange
listing
5
Your journey consists of six milestones. complete
Whether you have already developed security review
your solution or have an idea that
you want to bring to market, you can
use this guide to complete the most
important phases of the AppExchange
ISV onboarding process. Keep in mind
that some of the steps outlined in this sign partnership
guide will require you to provide detailed agreement with
salesforce
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insights into your technology use cases
and development.

3 prepare solution
documentation

build your
2
1 Join the Partner
Community
solution

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1. JOIN THE The first step to becoming an AppExchange ISV partner is to
join the Partner Community. The Partner Community is the

PARTNER Salesforce hub for AppExchange ISV partners and the gateway
to unlocking your benefits in the AppExchange Partner Program.

COMMUNITY Within the Partner Community, existing and prospective ISVs can
access partner resources and collaboration forums. It’s also the
place where you can manage your listings and solutions. Keep in
mind that your partnership agreement must be signed in order to
be considered a formal AppExchange ISV partner.

How to Join the Partner Community:

1. Create a Salesforce username:

• Go to the Partner Community and click the ”Become a
Partner” button on the Partner Community homepage and
follow the steps to create a Salesforce username.

Pro Tip: To ensure you have access to all the necessary

partner tools, we recommend creating new Salesforce
credentials (even if you have pre-existing Salesforce
credentials) by selecting “Get a Salesforce User Name” on
the log-in screen.

• Once you have filled out the necessary forms to create your
username (it must be unique), you will receive an email
confirmation to the email address that you provided.

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 • Use the link in your email confirmation to create a • Those looking to join our partner program should select the
permanent password and verify your Salesforce account. “Join the Partner Program” option.
You will be logged into the Enterprise Edition of Salesforce,
• Fill out the information requested and make sure that
also known as your Partner Business Org (PBO). This is a
you select “AppExchange ISV Partner” when asked for
12-month trial edition of Salesforce. Once you execute your
“Partner Type.”
partnership agreement you are eligible for two free Sales
• Review and agree to the Salesforce Partner Program Policy
Cloud licenses.
and the Salesforce Partner Program Agreement (SPPA).
Pro Tip: Log a case to activate your licenses after contract
Once you have clicked through and agreed to the program
execution. Don’t let them expire.
terms, your request to join the Salesforce Partner Community
will be approved within minutes.
2. Log in and Select Program Type:
• You are now ready to log in to the Partner Community. Enter
your new Salesforce username credentials. Your username
should be automatically detected if you are still logged in to
the trial PBO.

• Once you are logged in, you will be asked to select one of
two options:

1. My Company is Already a Partner

2. Join the Partner Program

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2. BUILD YOUR You can start the AppExchange ISV onboarding process with, or
without, the development of your ISV solution being complete.

SOLUTION Whether your solution is in the early or advanced stages of

development, be clear on the architecture and ready to provide
this information to the AppExchange ISV team to review in
milestones three and beyond. This is a great time to begin
preparing for security review.

To assist you in this phase, we have three excellent resources:

• Build Apps as an AppExchange Partner - This trail will guide
you through the key concepts and tools you need to build
and sell your solution with the AppExchange
Partner Program.

• Everything You Need to Know to Build a Great

AppExchange App - This blog post provides a brief overview
of the many tools and resources available to help you build
a secure, scalable, and profitable AppExchange solution for
your customers.

• Meet with a Platform Expert to Get Technical Advice - As

an AppExchange ISV partner, you get access to technical
consultations with Salesforce Platform experts to receive
architecture guidance and get insights into key product
topics.

You can also interact with other AppExchange ISV partners

and our ISV Technical Evangelists in our AppExchange & ISV
Technical Enablement collaboration group in the
Partner Community. 5
3. PREPARE In the solution documentation milestone, provide your listing
and pricing information along with insights into your solution’s

SOLUTION go-to-market strategy and technology use cases.

DOCUMENTATION The solution documentation process includes five key steps:

1. Start Initial AppExchange Listing Process
2. Submit Listing Price Information
3. Complete and Submit the Business Plan
4. Enter Compliance Process
5. Solution Documentation Validation

1. Start Initial AppExchange Listing Process

• To create a new AppExchange listing, log in to the
Partner Community and click on the “Publishing” tab
in the homepage navigation bar.

• Within the “Publishing” tab, click the “New Listing” button.

You need to fill out several fields (listed below) on the “New
Listing” page:
1. Listing Title
2. What are you listing? (Refer to “Listing Type Definitions”
in the Appendix for details on all listing types)
3. Marketplace (English, Japanese)

• Once you have clicked and submitted on the “New Listing”

page, you will be taken to the “Business Plan” page.

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2. Submit Listing Price Information
Within the listing you created, navigate to the “Pricing” tab. You
will need to identify whether your solution is “free,” “paid, with
Checkout” or “paid, without Checkout.” It is important to include
pricing information on your listing. If you are unsure of your
intended pricing model, please select “paid, without Checkout.”
This can be modified later in the onboarding process once your
Business Plan has been reviewed by the AppExchange ISV team.
After submission, the AppExchange ISV team will reach out to
clarify additional details about your application and commercial
relationship. Once your business plan is officially approved, you
will be notified directly. During this time, it is a great opportunity
to think about and get ahead of, security review (see milestone
5). Review the necessary preparation materials on the Security
Review Overview Page.

4. Enter Compliance Process

Learn more about our partner program and most recent program
policies on our Partner Program page. To better understand the
differences between “Free” versus “Paid”, refer to page 13 in the
Partner Program Policies document.
After your Business Plan is submitted, you will enter our
Compliance Review process. The compliance process is
our internal legal review to ensure that every solution and
AppExchange ISV partner meets the highest standard of trust.

3. Complete and Submit Business Questionnaires

This process can take several weeks. We appreciate your patience
Once you have completed your listing price information, navigate
to the “Business Plan.” Complete the “Business & Product as we uphold trust as our #1 Salesforce value and deliver on that

Information” questionnaire. If you plan to charge for your promise to customers.

solution and have updated the “Pricing” tab accordingly, the
“Due Diligence & Compliance Certification” will be available and
5. Solution Documentation Validation
is required for Business Plan submission. Once you have filled
The AppExchange ISV team will need to validate all the
out each of the questionnaires, click the “Submit for Approval”
information provided in your solution documentation. You
button on the bottom right of the page.
will hear directly from the AppExchange ISV team during
1. Business & Product Information
this milestone.
2. Due Diligence and Compliance Certification
(Note: The Due Diligence and Compliance Certification
requires you to upload specific business and
legal documents.)
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4. SIGN A The Partner Application Distribution Agreement (PADA) process
looks different for every prospective partner and is influenced

PARTNERSHIP by factors such as technology use case and business go-to-

market strategy. The AppExchange ISV team will work with you

AGREEMENT individually to align on the appropriate Salesforce commercial

arrangement based on eligibility—either a standard revenue share

WITH model or a fee structure based on projected customer volume.

To learn more about application type and revenue share, check
SALESFORCE out the Select an App Type unit. There are also great articles
from our community on how to price your AppExchange solution
and FAQs about the Salesforce Partnership Agreement.

Once you have a signed partnership agreement with

AppExchange, you are a formal AppExchange ISV partner.

After executing the partnership agreement, you can activate your

trial PBO by logging a case. We recommend activating it as soon
as possible to prevent your trial PBO from expiring, resulting in
data loss.

Check out everything you need to know about your PBO here.

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5. COMPLETE As you approach this critical step in your partner journey, ensure
you prepare thoroughly for security review. After your solution

SECURITY documentation, compliance review, and appropriate partnership

agreement have been completed, you are ready to submit your

REVIEW solution for security review. You can read through the Security
Review Overview page in the Partner Community for a step-by-
step view of the entire process and how to prepare.

If your managed package contains Apex code and you

haven’t run the Salesforce Code Analyzer yet, run it now.
Security Review ensures that the solution you publish on the
AppExchange meets Salesforce’s strict security requirements
and provides the highest level of protection to customer data.
Security review often requires more than one attempt, so please
prepare accordingly.

In the Publishing Console, there are two options to submit for

security review:

Option #1: Go to the “Listings” tab, click on your App tile, then
click on the “Security Review” tab and follow the instructions.

Option #2: Go to the “Packages” tab and click “Start Review.”

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You can expect the security review process to take about six to
eight weeks from the time your solution is officially accepted by
the AppExchange ISV team. Make sure that the email you use to
submit for security review is actively monitored. We will contact
you with necessary updates or questions during the process.
Please note that all paid partners must submit a one-time
security review fee of $2,550 and a $150 annual listing fee.

If you have questions, post a question on the AppExchange

Partner Security Review collaboration group.

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6. DESIGN AND Once your solution passes security review, you can list your
solution on the AppExchange. Take the necessary steps to ensure

PUBLISH YOUR your AppExchange listing is optimized for rich design and content
to drive the highest level of engagement and conversion. This

APPEXCHANGE guide is a helpful resource to learn what it takes to make a great

AppExchange listing. Once you’re ready to publish your listing,

LISTING click the “Publish Listing” button within the “Publishing” tab
inside the Partner Community. Your solution will then become
live on the AppExchange for customers to find.

Lastly, don’t forget to configure ISV tools such as the License

Management App (LMA) and Channel Order App (COA) to
track your leads and application licenses. You are required to
report all sales of your application back to Salesforce using the
Channel Order Application. Learn more about these tools under
Partner Business Tools in the Appendix. Once your listing is live
and your ISV tools are configured, you’re ready to get going with
AppExchange – the world’s leading enterprise cloud marketplace!

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APPENDIX
GENERAL RESOURCES:
• Partner Program Overview Page • ISV Go-To-Market Guide
Learn more about the Partner Program and the benefits partners This step-by-step guide details before, during, and immediately

receive at each tier. following the launch of your solution. With various resources
and insights outlined throughout the e-book, you’ll gain access

• Sign up for Salesforce Partner Communications to the knowledge necessary to continue to grow your business

Opt in to receive partner email communications related to your with Salesforce.

Salesforce Partner Program.

• How to Win Your First Customer and Beyond
• AppExchange Checkout Join this self-guided journey to learn how to prepare, and

Learn how Checkout helps you manage online payments and successfully execute, a go-to-market strategy with Salesforce.

monitor sales for your solutions with this trailhead module.

Please note that Checkout is not ideal for all partners. Once • Grow Your Business as an AppExchange Partner
you thoroughly complete milestone three (Prepare Solution Take this trail to learn how to manage your business and help

Documentation), the AppExchange ISV team can accurately your customers thrive with your AppExchange products.

advise if Checkout is right for you.

• ISV Operations Curriculum

This series on Partner Learning Camp teaches you how to use
tools such as the License Management Application (LMA) and
other strategies to increase the efficiency and organization of your
solution development and business.

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PARTNER BUSINESS TOOLS your customers.

Listed below are some critical partner business tools you’ll use to
manage your business. Take this trail to learn about all tools to • Developer Experience | Salesforce Developer Center
plan, build, distribute, sell, market, and support your application. Explore developer tools you’ll use to build your solution.

• License Management Application (LMA) • Second-Generation Managed Packages

Learn how to manage leads and licenses for your AppExchange Learn how to distribute your AppExchange solution using our

solutions with LMA. latest packaging technology.

• Channel Order App (COA) Overview

Learn how to submit and manage customer orders with COA. LISTING TYPE DEFINITIONS:
Lightning Platform

• Environment Hub Tools & Processes A solution delivered exclusively via a managed package and

Learn how to set up and configure your environment hub, create distributed on the AppExchange.

and view new orgs, and more.

Composite

• Trialforce A solution delivered via a managed package and off-platform

Seamlessly deliver free trials to your customers with a free trial services and distributed on the AppExchange.

of your AppExchange solution.

API-Only
A solution that works with the Salesforce Lighting Platform and

DEVELOPER TOOLS core products, but doesn’t need or use a managed package.

• Everything You Need to Know to Build a Great These solutions don’t have any partner intellectual property

AppExchange App on the Lightning Platform. Solutions of this type integrate with

Learn about the many tools and resources available to help you the Lightning Platform exclusively through standard Lightning

build a secure, scalable, and profitable AppExchange solution for Platform APIs (e.g. SOAP, REST, Bulk).

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 Lightning Component
The building blocks for making apps and customizing pages in
Lightning App Builder with drag and drop. Paid components are
required to leverage AppExchange Checkout.

QUESTIONS?
• AppExchange & ISV Technical Enablement
Collaboration Group
Post your technical onboarding questions in this Partner
Community group.

• Log a Support Case

For Salesforce Partner Program support please log a case.

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